February 07, 2004
From the desk of Mindles H. Dreck:O mihi praeteritos referat si Iuppiter annos
In tenth grade my approach to schoolwork changed. Prior to high school, I never had to try very hard to do well. My Latin teacher (Let's call him "Mr. C.") demanded much more. I remember being called on in class after at least two hours struggling through sixty or seventy lines of The Aeneid the prior night. My translation failed to meet his standards yet again and he warned me that I was in danger of a "squared grade" (a designation of inadequate effort). It was an immensely frustrating time for me, but looking back I appreciate the challenge he posed. He taught me Latin for two years and Greek for one. I never felt I had quite satisfied him. While some teachers beat up students to inflate their own importance, I never doubted that Mr. C.'s motive was my own improvement.
Years later, starting out in my career, I ran into Mr. C. with one of the senior executives of my company. He described me to my new colleague as "one of my best students". I nearly fainted.
This morning, relaxing with the Sunday Magazine, I turned the page and received a jolt I hadn't felt in decades. There he is, front and center at a Kerry rally (wearing his customary bowtie).
Posted by Mindles H. Dreck at February 7, 2004 10:27 AM | TrackBack | Technorati inbound links